The impact of tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum on America’s foreign policy and identity on the world stage…

Recently, President Trump enacted high tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum into the United States.

Domestically, immigrants are being scoffed at for looking a certain way and not being “American” enough. Transgender individuals are being called for not being “fit enough” to serve in our military. Sexual assault & neo-nazi behavior is being condoned by the Oval Office. And internationally our identity and our moral authority is being chipped away at, begging the question of who is “enough” of an American ally.

Core to that shift is a changing of the guard of how America represents itself globally. Our democratic values and commitment to free/open trade have always been essential American exports overseas. But recent overtures, some political (Tweet wars with Prime Minister Teresa May), and others substantive (steel/aluminum tariffs) has impacted everything from global stock markets, to how we conduct foreign policy, to skepticism among global intelligence agencies, to inciting potential trade wars. How does America maintain its identity as a leader on the world stage when we call trade practices among allies threats to national security? How does America’s trade & foreign policy apparatus get respected among allies or foes, when major decisions are often reported on as being snap judgments by the Administration? How does a Section 232 national security review change our relationship with other countries? How will the tariffs impact local businesses?

Nomi Goheer is an associate in Willkie Farr & Gallagher’s Global Trade & Investment Practice Group in Washington, DC. He provides advice and assistance to clients on the government regulation of international trade, particularly with regard to export controls, economic sanctions, anti-money laundering, and foreign investment in the United States under the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). He also provides advice to clients on U.S. trade policy and trade remedies.

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